Esma Okutan, Contributing photographer

Chief Financial Officer of Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank Andrew Cross spoke to the School of Management on Oct. 1, putting a spotlight on the role of public and private equity in financing global infrastructure.

The conversation was moderated by Kevin Lu, adjunct professor at Yale-NUS College in Singapore and chairman of Asia at Partners Group, a private equity firm with $127 billion in assets. The conversation between Cross and Lu was part of an SOM International Center of Finance Private Equity Colloquium.

“Capital and societies are very closely linked,” Lu said in an interview with the News. “If you want to make a difference in societies, you cannot ignore wealth, money and capital. … And to make a difference, you need to have a good handle of where the capital is and how the capital channels into assets, both through the public and the private sector.”

During the talk, Lu outlined the value of infrastructure as a productive asset that can have significant social impact. He noted the bipartisan nature of infrastructure, characterizing it as a uniting factor with immense potential to solve national and global problems.

Cross noted an “infrastructure gap” in Asia, noting how many countries are not economically strong enough to develop the infrastructure they need. Highlighting the role of AIIB in infrastructure funding, he discussed the bank’s contribution to economically and environmentally sustainable development in Asia. 

“If you look at the multitude of crises the world is dealing with, from the food crisis, economic crisis, climate crisis, war crisis, to educational crisis, … in that environment multilateralism is even more important,” he said. “You have to create venues and institutions that are trying to do something bigger than themselves.”

Sylvia Wang SOM ’23, a graduate student in the Master of Advanced Management program, was among the students who attended Cross’ conference.

She stressed her interest in the economic future of Southeast Asian countries and the investment opportunities in the region.

“Financing the global infrastructure investment is an important topic,” Wang told the News. “Just as Mr. Andrew Cross mentioned, there is a big gap between the equity of AIIB and the capital needed to finance all the infrastructure investment. … It is a topic that is worth further study.”

She explained that her key takeaway from the conference was the idea of “urgent patience” required for infrastructure investment, which she explained was the patience needed to build solutions through infrastructure to solve the world’s most urgent problems. 

Cross outlined the challenges of green infrastructure investment, noting the permanence and the long-term impacts of the asset. He also demonstrated the ability of infrastructure to change microclimates and the importance of technological innovation in reducing its carbon footprint.

Prior to the conference, Cross attended Lu’s Tuesday morning seminar on private equity in Asia to guest speak along with former U.K. prime minister Gordon Brown, who connected over Zoom.

AIIB comprises over 400 staff and capital worth $100 billion, with China, India and Russia as its three main shareholders.

“AIIB is growing and it’s recruiting,” Cross said. “It’s always looking for talent, and there are a number of programs the bank has for onboarding both undergraduates and graduates.”

AIIB has invested more than $36 billion in over 190 projects.